'Breaking Bad' Series Finale: Creator Vince Gilligan Explains Ending Walt & Jesse's Story [VIDEO]
The series finale of Breaking Bad aired Sunday night and creator Vince Gilligan explained why he chose to end it the way he did in a Monday interview with Entertainment Weekly.
The popular AMC drama ended with its main character Walter White (Bryan Cranston) collapsing and dying after killing the villainous Neo-Nazis. The chemistry teacher-turned-meth empire kingpin convinced his former Gray Matter partners to give his remaining money to Walt, Jr. (R.J. Mitte).
Gilligan explained that this felt like the proper way to end the show, with Walt ending things on his own terms despite leaving those around him in carnage.
"Walt is never going to redeem himself. He's just too far down the road to damnation," Gilligan explained. "But at least he takes a few steps along that path. And I think more importantly for him than that is the fact that he accomplishes what he set out to accomplish way back in the first episode: He leaves his family just a ton of money."
The episode also provided Jesse (Aaron Paul) to escape the Nazi compound alive and firmly put an end to his association with Walt.
"We always felt like the viewers desired Jesse to get away," Gilligan said. "And it's up to the individual viewer to decide what happens next for Jesse."
The troubled junkie drove away from the compound with a liberating look on his face, finally realizing that he was free of the Nazis as well as Walt's manipulation. Gilligan said that he left the final scene for Jesse open-ended, explaining that viewers can fill in the blanks for what they think happens to Jesse next.
"I prefer to believe that he got away, and he's got a long road to recovery ahead," Gilligan admitted. "All these terrible things he's witnessed are going to scar him . . . but the romantic in me wants to believe that he gets away with it and moves to Alaska and has a peaceful life communing with nature."
Overall, Gilligan said he feels good that the series ended where it did and that it ended in a proper and fitting way.
